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Culling the Masses: The Democratic Origins of Racist Immigration Policy in the Americas by David Scott Fitzgerald (2014-04-25) Hardcover

by David Scott Fitzgerald (Author)

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Culling the Masses" questions the widely held view that in the long run democracy and racism cannot coexist. David Scott FitzGerald and David Cook-Martin show that democracies were the first countries in the Americas to select immigrants by race, and undemocratic states the first to outlaw discrimination. Through analysis of legal records from twenty-two countries between 1790 and 2010, the authors present a history of the rise and fall of racial selection in the Western Hemisphere.The United States led the way in using legal means to exclude "inferior" ethnic groups. Starting in 1790, Congress began passing nationality and immigration laws that prevented Africans and Asians from becoming citizens, on the grounds that they were inherently incapable of self-government. Similar policies were soon adopted by the self-governing colonies and dominions of the British Empire, eventually spreading across Latin America as well.Undemocratic regimes in Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Cuba reversed their discriminatory laws in the 1930s and 1940s, decades ahead of the United States and Canada. The conventional claim that racism and democracy are antithetical--because democracy depends on ideals of equality and fairness, which are incompatible with the notion of racial inferiority--cannot explain why liberal democracies were leaders in promoting racist policies and laggards in eliminating them. Ultimately, the authors argue, the changed racial geopolitics of World War II and the Cold War was necessary to convince North American countries to reform their immigration and citizenship laws."

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ASIN ‏ : ‎ B01K9574EA
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harvard University Press
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David FitzGerald
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David Scott FitzGerald is Theodore E. Gildred Chair in U.S.-Mexican Relations, Professor of Sociology, and Co-Director of the Center for Comparative Immigration Studies at the University of California San Diego. He writes about policies regulating migration and asylum in countries of origin, transit, and destination. For more information, see http://ccis.ucsd.edu/people/co-directors-staff/fitzgerald.html.
FitzGerald’s books have garnered numerous awards:
• American Sociological Association (ASA) Human Rights Section Gordon Hirabayashi Book Award for Refuge beyond Reach, 2021
• International Studies Association Human Rights Section Best Book Award for Refuge beyond Reach, 2021
• ASA International Migration Section Thomas & Znaniecki Best Book Award, for Refuge beyond Reach, 2020
• CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title for Refuge beyond Reach, 2019
• ASA Distinguished Scholarly Book Award, for Culling the Masses, 2017
• Midwest Sociological Society Distinguished Book Award, for Culling the Masses, 2017
• APSA Migration and Citizenship Section Best Book Award, for Culling the Masses, 2015
• ASA Political Sociology Section Best Book Award, for Culling the Masses, 2015
• ASA International Migration Section Thomas & Znaniecki Best Book Award, for Culling the Masses, 2015
• Honorable Mention, Theodore Saloutos Book Prize, Immigration and Ethnic History Society for Culling the Masses, 2015
• ASA International Migration Section Award for Public Sociology, 2013
• Choice Outstanding Academic Title for Four Generations of Norteños: New Research from the Cradle of Mexican Migration, 2009
• Choice Outstanding Academic Title for Migration from the Mexican Mixteca, 2009
BOOKS:
- The Refugee System: A Sociological Approach (Polity Press 2023)
- Refuge beyond Reach: How Rich Democracies Repel Asylum Seekers (Oxford University Press 2019)
- Culling the Masses: The Democratic Origins of Racist Immigration Policy in the Americas (Harvard University Press 2014)
- A Nation of Emigrants: How Mexico Manages its Migration (University of California Press 2009)
Negotiating Extra-Territorial Citizenship: Mexican Migration and the Transnational Politics of Community (Center for Comparative Immigration Studies 2000)
EDITED BOOKS:
- Immigrant California: Understanding the Past, Present, and Future of U.S. Policy (Stanford University Press 2021)
- The Wall Between Us: A Mixteco Migrant Community in Mexico and the United States (Center for Comparative Immigration Studies 2013)
- Recession Without Borders: Mexican Migrants Confront the Economic Downturn (Center for Comparative Immigration Studies 2011)
- Mexican Migration and the U.S. Economic Crisis (Center for Comparative Immigration Studies 2010)
- Migration from the Mexican Mixteca (Center for Comparative Immigration Studies 2009)

- Four Generations of Norteños: New Research from the Cradle of Mexican Migration (Center for Comparative Immigration Studies 2009)
- Mayan Journeys: The New Migration from Yucatán to the United States (Center for Comparative Immigration Studies 2007)
His 35 articles and book chapters have been published in the American Journal of Sociology, Annual Review of Sociology, Law and Society Review, Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, Journal of Interdisciplinary History, Comparative Studies in Society and History, International Migration Review, Ethnic and Racial Studies, Qualitative Sociology, Third World Quarterly, and New York University Law Review.
FitzGerald was honored with the “Award for Public Sociology” from the International Migration Section of the American Sociological Association and frequently provides comment to local, national, and international media.
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David Cook-Martín
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Professor of Sociology at Grinnell College and Assistant Vice President of Global Education. His work as a political sociologist focuses on understanding migration, race, ethnicity, law, and citizenship in an international field of power. He holds a Ph.D. in Sociology from UCLA, an MA in Sociology from the University of Houston, and B.A. from Wheaton College. David has worked with the Spanish National Research Council, is a former Andrew W. Mellon Fellow in Latin American Sociology (UCLA), and a National Science Foundation postdoctoral fellow (UC Irvine). David is a member of the Scholars Strategy Network, an organization that disseminates research to improve policy and enhance democracy.
Recent interview on slate.com: http://bit.ly/1ksvJAK
Scramble for Citizens won the Thomas and Znaniecki Award for the Best Book in International Migration 2014
Culling the Masses received the American Sociological Association’s 2017 Distinguished Scholarly Publication Award and the 2017 Midwest Sociological Society’s Distinguished Book Award. This book previously won the American Sociological Association’s Thomas and Znaniecki Book Award (2015) for the best book on international migration, the ASA’s Political Sociology Section Best Book Award (2015), the American Political Science Association’s Migration and Citizenship Award for Best Book in 2015, and Honorable Mention for the Theodore Saloutos Book Prize of the Immigration and Ethnic History Society.
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Dean Fitzgerald
Fascinating read
Reviewed in the United States on May 17, 2014
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Well written and well researched. A tremendously interesting insight into racial profiling of immigrants. A very timely and thoughtful study.

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Kathy Roy
Great book!
Reviewed in the United States on February 4, 2015
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Great book. Very insightful!

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Elena Macias
Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on June 30, 2015
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Eye opening!

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Daniel N.
Ground-breaking contribution to comparative immigration scholarship
Reviewed in the United States on August 22, 2014
“Culling the Masses” is a ground-breaking contribution to comparative immigration scholarship. It sheds light on what criteria were used to select immigrants in the entirety of the Americas, from Canada to Argentina, from the US to Cuba and other countries.

The often openly racist policies of exclusion and inclusion of certain immigrants are meticulously researched by the authors, as are the underlying assumptions and value judgments about certain groups, such as Asians, Roma, and others. Their analysis spans more than 200 years, revealing authentic documents from policy-making processes in a large number of countries that are the result of in-depth archival work by the authors.

Ultimately, the insights into processes of norm diffusion and the exploration on the impact of democratic and non-democratic political regimes make this book a must-read for scholars, students, and the interested public who want to learn more about how states learn to select immigrants and what are the limitations of the involved policy choices.

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mls books
An indispenaible read
Reviewed in the United States on October 21, 2014
Culling the Masses is an indispensable read for anyone interested in the history and politics of racially exclusionary immigration policy in the Americas. This book is the first to provide a comprehensive analysis of the rise and fall of racial and national origin exclusions in immigration law across the Americas –covering no fewer than twenty-two countries over more than two centuries. The incredible breadth and depth of the analysis pays off in a big way. Fitzgerald and Cook-Martin break new ground by demonstrating the pivotal role of geopolitics and international organizations in shaping immigration policy in individual countries – including the United States. Their comparative analysis also raises troubling questions about the intimate historical link between democratic processes and racist social policies throughout the Americas.

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JAV
Critical contribution to studies of immigration, citizenship, and politics.
Reviewed in the United States on August 22, 2014
A must read, Culling the Masses is an impressive book that offers a novel historical analysis of the evolution of immigration policy. The book is relevant to contemporary policy debates of immigration and should be read by politicians, scholars, and laypersons interested in issues of immigration and race.

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Vikki Sara Katz
Must read
Reviewed in the United States on August 22, 2014
This book provides a sweeping, meticulously researched, and fascinating argument that goes against prevailing wisdom; that is, that democracy leads to anti-racist immigration policy. It should be required reading for migration and policy scholars across a broad range of disciplines.

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M. Springer
It reads like a history of the economics and politics of racism ...
Reviewed in the United States on September 17, 2014
One of the most interesting books I have ever read. It reads like a history of the economics and politics of racism and immigration throughout the world. Fascinating! Treat yourself.

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